May 13, 2008
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Situation Ethics
Many people live according to “situation ethics,” a concept made famous by Joseph Fletcher in the 1960s. This lifestyle rejects the concept of moral absolutes. It’s a philosophy advocated by men like British writer, Somerset Maugham, who once wrote, “No action is in itself good or bad, but only such according to convention.” Those with this belief have no reservations about living according to “free love”-doing whatever they want, without concern for God, His Word, or eternity.
What are your thoughts on moral absolute?
Comments (17)
Right is right, wrong is wrong. Black and white, no room for gray.
My thoughts on Moral Absolutes? God HAS them and so should we. Without them, there’s chaos!
I agree with it. Morality is to a certain extent subjective by virtue of the fact that much of it is based on personal beliefs. Your morals are the standards you hold yourself to living through your interpretation of society’s conventions. Someone who is atheistic would likely form their morals from something other than the Bible, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they would engage in activity that someone who is Christian would consider immoral. I find a lot of religions have similar viewpoints on moral teachings and how to treat others, and that tends to permeate into the morals of just about anyone, regardless of whether you have faith in a God. As for being indulgent or leading a lifestyle that is particularly sinful, I find not a whole lot of difference between those who claim to be followers of Christ and those who aren’t (I say “claim to be” because many whom I encounter lead whatever lifestyle they want to and periodically ask for forgiveness, yet make no attempt to change themselves, which is a rant on its own entirely). Even grown adults. That is the honest truth.
@bubenun - Rarely do I find black or white issues. If you look deep enough, there is almost always grey.
Oh this is something I have been thinking about… I believe in right and wrong, and somethings are very clear, killing, abuse, etc… but then I have seen people who “just want to do the right thing” devastate others… because they ‘wanted to be honest’ or some such thing… I think that God’s love is absolute, and we would do well to emulate that!
There have to be moral absolutes. If morality is subjective than what is the point of Christ’s death on the cross. Absolutely none. There are rights, there are wrongs. The one saying I heard is that if you are trying to justify a wrong action, then you are about to sin.
I fully believe in the grace of God, as stated in Romans where is says that we are no longer under the law, but under grace. That doesn’t completely nullify the law. Because we are under grace doesn’t give us the right to sin willy nilly. There are certain standards that God holds us to. We being human, and not to make it sound like an excuse, are going to slip up every now and then. It’s at that point that we fall to the feet of the Christ asking him to forgive us of our sins. Upon repentance we turn from our wrong actions and don’t return to that line of behavior. Each day is a growing process. Only by God’s grace and mercy are we able to continue on.
In other areas of life, there are definite boundaries and absolutes. For example: in mathematics, 2+2=4; in science, gravity pulls and the water freezes at 32 degrees fahrenheit; in music, only combinations of certain notes produce harmony; in health, abusing substances will damage your body while eating well and exercising will strengthen it. In most areas of life, we can typically predict what will happen because of the natural laws that are already in place. So, it only makes sense that there would also be absolutes in regards to morality. Living in an upright, moral way brings peace to our conscious, while immoral living normally produces emotional, physical, psychological, and relational damage. It’s only because morality inconveniences humanity’s innate selfishness that some people choose to believe that morality is relative.
With God, we either ARE or we ARE NOT. There definitely are ABSOLUTES. I ARE!
@waiting_for_the_final_trumpet - I like the way you put that. We can’t have absolutes in one area and not others.
There are moral absolutes.
Men and women don’t deal with them well.
I guess I agree cause say stealing is wrong but if someone is hungry is it still wrong for the person to do?
Could we throw a little grace in the mix?
@bubenun -
I agree
@jillcarmel -
it is still wrong. To many people tend to think that the ends justify the means but they dont.
Black and White. Wrong and Right. NO grey
This is an interesting discussion.
There are absolutes in faith – you believe or you don’t. Human nature resolves us to accept our limitations knowing that we do not have the power (for lack of a better word) to live in absolutes at all times. We all have grey moments….it’s what we learn from them that matters –
At least that’s my take on it.
I do to a degree in the concept of greater good and that there are grey areas. God deals differently with different people. It is right for an adulterer to be stoned in one book but not in another – yes I realise its old and new testament.
what are you thoughts Randy?